


A very Malfoy Christmas

by Nival_Vixen



Series: Prompts 2020 [7]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Anxiety Attacks, Auror Ron Weasley, Christmas Dinner, Christmas Fluff, Complete, Dating, Draco Malfoy Tries, Draco Malfoy is a Good Boyfriend, F/M, Family Drama, Family Feels, Good Draco Malfoy, Good Ginny Weasley, Good Narcissa Black Malfoy, Hermione Granger is So Done, Overprotective and Suspicious brother, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Prompt Fic, Redeemed Draco Malfoy, Ron Weasley Bashing, Secret Relationship, doesn't go well with surprises, especially from Draco Malfoy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-27
Updated: 2020-12-27
Packaged: 2021-03-10 17:53:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,365
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28371198
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nival_Vixen/pseuds/Nival_Vixen
Summary: Draco is so utterly in love with Ginny that he'll even get over his intense dislike of Christmas to invite her whole family over for a Christmas Day luncheon.Ron is suspicious; Harry is scared of Hermione; Hermione isso done.What could possibly go wrong?
Relationships: Arthur Weasley/Molly Weasley, Astoria Greengrass/Harry Potter, Draco Malfoy/Ginny Weasley, Hermione Granger/Ron Weasley, Penelope Clearwater/Percy Weasley
Series: Prompts 2020 [7]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1921621
Comments: 1
Kudos: 24





	A very Malfoy Christmas

**Author's Note:**

> Prompt: Christmas one shot! Draco & Ginny work together by day at the Ministry and everyone believes they hate each other’s guts. Though behind closed doors secretly they have been dating for almost a year and he simply adores her. Christmas Day is their one year anniversary & Draco is tired of having to hide his relationship, and sneaking around. So he plots to get their separate families together for Christmas dinner. What could go wrong?

"Did you get one, too?" Ron asked Harry incredulously, snatching the envelope out of his hands.

"How can he know what you're talking about if he hasn't had a chance to open the envelope yet?" Hermione asked pointedly.

Ron winced at his wife's tone and held the envelope back out to Harry. "Sorry, mate."

"Um... It's fine. Why're you so interested in my mail anyway?" Harry asked, undoing the seal on the back and pulling the document free of the envelope. "Oh. Makes sense now. Why's Malfoy inviting us to his place? On Christmas Day, too?"

"I don't know! That's all it says. You're cordially invited to join Draco and Narcissa Malfoy at Malfoy Manor on Christmas Day for a celebration luncheon. It's not even lunch, it's a  _ luncheon! _ What the hell's that lot celebrating, anyway?"

"Why do they want us there to celebrate?" Harry murmured, turning the invitation over. "Oh, there's dress instructions and a Secret Santa... Does that actually say we have to wear ridiculous jumpers?" he asked, thinking of some of the awful jumpers his wife had bought for them as souvenirs over the years.

"You're right; Malfoy's probably setting us up to make fun of us," Ron groused.

Hermione - who had been dealing with Ron's outlandish theories ever since they received the owl post that morning - had had enough. "Give it to me.  _ Now _ , Harry!" she snapped.

Harry had decided at a very young age that he never wanted Hermione to be angry with him, and stood by that decision even now that he was older and supposedly wiser. Handing the invitation to her, he stepped back in case she planned on setting it alight.

Hermione tapped her wand to the invitation, shook the thick parchment three times, and then looked at it intently. "There's no curse on it. There's no bewitchment or... oh. There is a No Speak Charm, but it's obviously not very good if we can talk to each other about it for the last  _ eight hours _ ."

"I knew it! Malfoy's trying to hex us!"

"That's  _ not what I said _ , Ronald!"

Harry stepped back once more. By the time Hermione started calling Ron 'Ronald' it only meant bad things. If she ever called him by his full name, Harry was going to Apparate his small family the hell out of there as if Voldemort was on his tail. Or worse, Umbridge.

"Harry? Dear, what's going on?" Astoria asked, looking out of the sitting room that she'd been preparing for Ron and Hermione's visit.

"We've been invited to Malfoy Manor for a Christmas lunch... uh, luncheon," Harry corrected.

"Oh, that's wonderful! Draco hasn't invited anyone over for a Christmas luncheon in years! Last year, he spent the  _ whole damned Witching Week getting drunk and embarrassing himself in front of patrons at the Hog's Head _ ," Astoria said, obviously quoting him since she rarely swore.

"He put a No Speak Charm on the invitation, do you know what that's about, Astoria?" Hermione asked now that she was no longer yelling at Ron.

"Oh. Well, yes. That's for the Secret Santa, of course. You don't want to spoil the surprise, do you?" Astoria asked, looking between them as though she couldn't believe they hadn't considered the answer for themselves. "Now, are you ready for our afternoon tea? The tea's almost finished steeping, and I got those biscuits you liked last time, Ron."

"Ooh! Thank you!" Ron said, ducking past Astoria quickly before anyone could try to stop him.

"He really shouldn't get a treat after the day I've been through. Honestly, you'd think that he would've gotten over this childish rivalry already," Hermione muttered, watching as Harry hurried after his best friend.

Looking at the invitation that was still in her hand, Hermione spotted the Secret Santa for Harry and Astoria, and frowned.

"Everything okay, Hermione?" Astoria asked. "I can limit the number of biscuits he eats, but they're already out and I'd hate those ones to go to waste. Harry's not fond of the custard creams; too many Wheezes products, if you ask me."

Distracted by the memory, Hermione couldn't help but laugh. "Oh, I remember when the twins were testing that! We were finding canary feathers all over the Common Room and couldn't figure out why for weeks!"

Astoria grinned. "I'm fairly sure all of the Common Rooms had the same mystery. Ravenclaws figured out fast not to eat anything lying around, though I hear Slytherin took a few days to come to the same conclusion. I think Crabbe and Goyle were outliers in that regard."

Hermione grinned. "Doesn't surprise me at all. Here, your invitation. If Ron firecalls in the middle of the night with more ridiculous theories, you have my permission to hex him."

"If Harry answers the firecall in the middle of the night, Ron won't be the only one hexed," Astoria promised, smiling sweetly.

...

"Weasley, you finished your parchment work yet?"

"Almost, Malfoy. I just need to finish writing what an absolute prat you were while on our mission. Do you think punishment by eating Flobberworms is harsh enough?"

"I'd never stoop so low as to eat Flobberworms. A Horklump, perhaps, if it was ground down."

"You're disgusting."

"Will you two ever stop arguing about every little thing? You're giving me a migraine," Malcolm Baddock groaned.

"No. You'll have to live with your migraine another day, Baddock," Ginny said.

"Why're you still here anyway?" Draco asked, nudging Malcolm.

  
"I was on my way out. I heard you two arguing and thought I could stop it before we all have an unpleasant weekend thinking about whatever awful thing one of you will say far too late on a Friday afternoon."

"Didn't know you cared, Baddock," Draco drawled.

"Why wouldn't I? Ruining a pretty girl's weekend is an awful hobby," Malcolm said, tutting. "And we all know I'm far too pretty to have a ruined weekend."

"Go home, Malcolm," Ginny said, rolling her eyes and throwing a Sugar Quill at them.

He caught it and grinned. "Thanks for the Sugar Quill, Ginny!" Malcolm said cheerfully, Disapparating before anyone could stop them.

"I still don't know if he's flirting with you or me," Draco mused, shaking his head.

"Hmm. I'm still betting that Galleon it's on you. And you really want curry for dinner?"

"We had pasta last week."

"I'm craving pasta though! I've been thinking about it  _ all day _ ," Ginny said, looking up at him with wide and pleading eyes.

Draco sighed. "Fine, we'll have pasta. Again."

Ginny grinned and stood up, shouldering her handbag. "Good. I'll order if you clean the dishes."

"You were waiting for me to cave, weren't you?"

"Maybe," she replied sweetly. Glancing around to ensure they were alone, Ginny raised on her toes and kissed his cheek. "Thank you, Draco."

"What the hell did you put in the Sugar Quill, Ginny?" Malcolm called out as he stormed back into the office, his face covered in red and green spots.

Draco panicked and Side Apparated Ginny away without him, turning to face Baddock and hoping he didn't look as panicked as he felt.

_ He'd just Disapparated his girlfriend to the middle of Muggle London without him! _

"Did you see that? She knew what she did and Apparated to escape justice! Look at my beautiful face!" Malcolm cried, the spots starting to glow like Christmas lights.

"Looks like an improvement to me, Baddock," Draco drawled, then Disapparated after Ginny as fast and calmly as he possibly could while his heart was stampeding in his chest.

_ Fuck, fuck, fuck! She was going to hate him for doing that to her and she'd probably break up with him and he couldn't bear to think about a future so hideous _ .

Draco arrived in a side alley in London only to find Ginny collapsed against the wall, laughing her arse off.

"Did you see his face?! He... he looked so... scandalised! Baddock should know better than to steal my Sugar Quills," Ginny said through her laughter.

Draco breathed a sigh of relief. "The Christmas lights started glowing when I left."

"Oh, brilliant! I'll have to tell George it worked. Did you see any words?"

"Uh... no, I probably left too soon. Do you want me to go back?"

"No, no! We're here now and I'm starving. There's a curry place around the corner and I've changed my mind. Did you Apparate me here on purpose, Draco?"

"No. I wouldn't do that to you, Gin. I just wanted you out of there before Baddock saw you kissing me. I know... I know you still want to keep it a secret," he added with a quick smile, shoving the pain down so very, very deep.

Ginny snorted. "Could you imagine if he saw us snogging?"

Draco smiled, broader now and teasing. "And what would be so bad about that?" he murmured, tilting her chin gently to kiss her deeply, melting against her as Ginny wrapped her arms around his shoulders and kissed him eagerly in return.

By the time they finished kissing, neither one really remembered the question or answer.

...

"Ginny! Where've you been? I've been trying to firecall you for three days!" Ron snapped when she finally answered her fireplace.

Ginny raised an eyebrow at her brother. "Really, Ron? Every minute of every day for the last three days?"

"Bloody feels like it. What've you been doing?"

"Working, sleeping, playing Quidditch in my spare time, and having a life outside of that. What have you been doing? I take it showering isn't on the list," she said, wrinkling her nose when she saw the state of Ron's hair - often pulled and greasy when he got obsessive about something, so it stuck on end like gravity didn't exist.

Ron winced. "I have a reason!"

"Ah, so you need a reason to call me now?" Ginny asked, part teasing and part annoyed.

"Uh. No. But this time, yes."

Ginny sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. "All right, I'll bite. What's your reason for calling?"

Ron's expression fell. "I can't tell you."

"Oh, for Merlin's sake, Ron. _Really?_ Go have a shower, I can't imagine what awful smells poor Hermione's been dealing with."

"I don't sm- oh," Ron stopped on smelling his own shirt, pulling a face. "Uh, I have to go. But I'll call you later about this, okay? Be there this time!"

"Wait, what is  _ this? _ Also, you can't just say you'll call me later and not tell me a time! You absolute prat," she groaned, now talking to the fireplace rather than her brother's head.

Ginny waited for a moment longer, just in case Ron decided to firecall her back, determined he wouldn't, and went to have a shower herself.

...

Draco wondered if he'd made a mistake. Christmas luncheon was meant to be a _nice_ thing, and a way for their families to interact without killing each other.  _ Maybe, hopefully _ . He was uncertain whether everyone would leave the luncheon alive, but he had to try, or so he'd thought.  _ Now, however? _ Now, he was wishing he'd just agreed to Gin's plan of a Christmas dinner together alone, after the day with their families separately.

It was never a good start to his day when Ron Weasley was standing by his desk and glaring at his rubber duck Portkey like it had offended his mother. Draco inhaled and exhaled slowly, trying not to think of this as a negative start.  _ Maybe he'd come to thank him for the invitation personally and respond saying they'd all be there with sleigh bells and Christmas twinkling lights on their festive jumpers? _

"Malfoy! I've been waiting for you!"

Draco set his lunch bag on his desk and attempted a smile. "So I see. How long have you been waiting, exactly?" he asked, spying three empty coffee cups in his rubbish bin that were certainly not his.

"Long enough. Now, explain what this whole business with the invitation is about!"

Draco frowned at the question. "I beg your pardon, are you actually asking me to explain what the meaning of an invitation is? You know the dictionary definition, don't you?"

Ron spluttered at his response. "I... I know what an invitation is!"

"Oh, good. I was worried for a moment there. So are you attending? Your mother's already replied saying she and your father will be there, as have... three of your siblings. Well, sister-in-laws count as siblings, don't they? Either way, there's been positive responses."

Ron opened and closed his mouth, pointed, then dropped his hand. "Who's coming?"

"Oh, I suppose four, if you count Astoria as your sister-in-law. You do, right? It's one of those big family things where anyone's accepted, no matter what they've done?"

"What's Astoria done?"

Draco sighed. "Nothing, it was just a question. And to answer your question: Astoria and... her husband, Fleur and Bill, George, and Penelope and Percy."

Ron blinked at his response. "Really? Percy, too?"

"He and Penelope responded before Fleur did, and she knew about it before the invitations were sent."

"She never said anything to me," Ron muttered.

"That's because Fleur knows how to keep a secret. Speaking of, have you thought of your Secret Santa gift?"

Ron shook his head. "I'm no good at that sort of thing; 'Mione will do it. I'll sign a card, if I - " his words cut off abruptly and Draco saw that Ginny was approaching, looking as lovely as she did suspicious. 

"Ron, what are you doing down here? The Auror office is three levels up. And why are you talking to Malfoy?"

"He was giving me a job to investigate. Why do you care, Weasley?"

"Because you're my partner and if you get work from an Auror, I need to be part of it. That's how  _ partners _ work. You know the dictionary definition, don't you?" she sneered. Ginny turned to Ron, hands on her hips. "What's the job, then?"

"Uh... It's... confidential."

Ginny's face turned to stone. "It's what?"

Ron swallowed hard. "I... have to go. Bye."

Ginny and Draco both watched as Ron all but ran out of the office, and Draco had to resist a strong urge to smack his own forehead.

_ Who knew Aurors were so bad at thinking on their feet? He'd thought of six different lies before Gin had even finished asking her question! _

"Malfoy?" Ginny asked, turning that stone-cold expression to him. "What was that about?"

"I signed a No Speak parchment, Gin. Can't say anything. But it's not bad, I promise."

"You signed a No Speak parchment? How long will it last? Is it related to a specific word or location?"

Draco sighed. "Stop trying to break the charm, Gi... Weasley. You just couldn't wait to see me, you brought your bag over?" he asked, smirking when Baddock approached, faint glowing words on his face.

"Ginevra Molly Weasley!"

Ginny's eyes widened and she turned on the spot. "Oh, for Merlin's sakes, Baddock! I thought you were my mother! Oh, look at your face!" she said, bursting into laughter.

Baddock glared, the lights flashing red. "They respond to my moods, did you know that? Not even makeup covered them when I was trying to have an accompanied orgasm!"

That made Ginny laugh even harder still and it took all of Draco's willpower not to watch her fondly, even as she dissolved into snorting laughs.  _ Merlin, he loved her so much _ .

...

"Ron! I thought I asked you to RSVP?" Hermione asked as she entered the living room.

"Huh?"

"Christmas luncheon at the Malfoy's? The thing you've been obsessed about for the last week and a half? You were meant to RSVP!"

Ron blinked owlishly as she opened the curtains, light pouring into the room. "I... have not done that yet."

"I can see that since the invitation is  _ right there _ ." Hermione marched over, snatching the invitation from the coffee table and made a horrified noise at the sight of what remained of the invitation. "Ronald Bilius Weasley."

"Uh... I... I'm going to go RSVP. We're both... going, right?"

Hermione's right eye twitched. "I'll do it myself. I'll be lucky to read the grate number off this! What on earth were you doing?"

"Checking for hexes and curses and other spells."

She stopped short. "Not only are you being paranoid and obsessive about a  _ luncheon _ , you're doubting my skills?"

Ron blanched. "No! Not at all. 'Mione, of course I wouldn't, I just - "

"You just decided that the spells I used weren't good enough, and  _ destroyed _ the invitation in the process?"

Ron didn't know what to do. He  _ knew _ that Malfoy had done something else to the invitation, he was sure of it! But he hadn't meant to doubt Hermione's skills, either.

Hermione let out a long and slow breath, and turned to the fireplace. "Call grate 008."

"It's a three," Ron said, his eyes widening even as he made the decision to leave the room very, very quickly at his wife's glare.

_In fact, perhaps it would be best to leave the house entirely_. He could talk to Bill and see what he thought about the invitation's No Speak Charm, among other things.  _ Bill was a curse breaker; he'd have to know what else was on the invitation!  _ Ron determined

"I'm going to see Bill; back later!" Ron called, Apparating a moment later.

...

After RSVPing to Narcissa Malfoy, who was very polite and smiled far more than Hermione remembered, she had set about cleaning the living room. Not only had Hermione needed  _ four _ damned spells to clean the living room from Ron's paranoid mess and clutter, but she'd had to finish the job manually when some of the books flew into each other in midair and broke the spell. When the lounge was finally clean, she laid down on it to rest and try not to think about anything.

She lasted five minutes before her mind wandered to what she had to organise and cook for dinner.  _ Then there were the Christmas presents to finish wrapping, and she had to figure out if Ginny would like a broom cleaning kit or a new wand holster for her Secret Santa gift better. Oh, and she had to remind Ron to actually sign the cards this year since she'd had to forge his signature last year. No one had really cared, but it was still nice to have her husband contribute to  _ **_something_ ** _ in all of this. She was cleaning up after him and making sure he was fed, checking that he'd bathed and was wearing clean clothes, and _ -

"Oh, fuck. I'm not his wife, I'm his mother."

Hermione's realisation made her sit upright and she shuddered, goosebumps breaking out along her skin.

"Uh. Sorry, I didn't mean nor want to overhear that, but you left your grate open. Would you mind picking Ron up? He's been hexed," Bill said from the fireplace.

Hermione's head whipped over so fast she heard her bones crack at the motion. "Who hexed him?"

"Uh, both me and Fleur. He insulted... well, a lot of people. Seems Ronnie-kins forgot Fleur is related to Draco Malfoy."

Hermione groaned and stood up to Floo to pick up her wayward husband. Spying another book on the floor, one she had apparently missed entirely, she stopped abruptly. "No."

Bill frowned. "Pardon?"

"No. I'm not picking him up. This time, he can clean up his own damned mess. Tell him I'm going to visit my mother; I'll be back when I decide to come back."

"Uhh... he's unconscious, can you owl him?"

"Fine. Can he stay there while he's unconscious?"

Bill snorted. "Not without getting hexed again. I'll roll him through the fireplace instead. Don't worry, I'll make sure he won't catch on fire before I close the grate," he added.

Hermione decided that she wouldn't hold her on her resolve to leave if she saw Ron right then. She nodded firmly, thanked Bill, and Apparated away.

...

Ginny paced. She hadn't been a suspicious person when she was younger - blindly writing to Tom Riddle at the age of eleven kind of cemented that personality trait - but since she was twelve, Ginny had been suspicious of everyone and everything. It led to a sort of lifelong paranoia that she'd never really escaped, always waiting for someone or something to betray her.

Somehow, despite everything she knew and had heard about Draco Malfoy from Hogwarts, when she met him at the Ministry two years after graduating, Ginny hadn't felt suspicious about him at all. He'd nodded his head at her when they were introduced, just as he had for every other introduction, and then returned to his partner. He'd been working at the Ministry for two years longer than her - she'd had to repeat her sixth year, just as every other sixth and seventh year had, considering their education before the Battle of Hogwarts had been less than exemplary and didn't match any of the educational criteria set by anyone anywhere ever. On the other hand, Draco had opted not to return to Hogwarts after the war - just like Harry, Ron, and Hermione - and he had either forgotten her or was determined not to let their past rule their present. The blood feud between their families had dissolved soon after the war ended, though Ron swore the whole family wasn't good anyway. Hermione had rolled her eyes, which matched Ginny's feelings about the ridiculous feud; it was stupid to live based on their ancestor's actions and the wand snapping incident that caused the feud in the first place was a bloody accident, so it was doubly stupid, and that's all Ginny had to say on it.

_ Anyway _ .

Draco had nodded to her politely, left to return to his partner in the Ministry, and apart from seeing him around the office every so often -  _ his blonde hair caught her eye, it wasn't like she was staring at him every day or something _ \- Ginny barely interacted with him.

Then, less than a year later, Draco's partner had died on what should have been a routine capture job. The witch in question had been Splinched when trying to escape a stampede of clay and ceramic elephants that had been enchanted by the black market wizard that they'd been sent after. She'd tried to return to her Splinched body, only to be trampled entirely. Draco had gone after the wizard's partner, leaving his own to deal with the wizard, and by the time he returned, the stampede had crushed his Splinched partner entirely. She'd managed to kill the black market wizard before it had happened, a lucky shot with a splintered wand, and had been hailed a hero.

Her death had caused quite a few people in their office to reevaluate their lives, take stock of the work they were doing, and if it was worth giving their life for. There were six transfer requests in the following three weeks, and Ginny's partner was one of them. As luck would have it, she and Draco had ended up as new partners when he returned from his mandatory leave a week later and had been cleared by the Ministry's psychologist.

Despite being given the all-clear by the psychologist, Draco was still clearly affected by his colleague's death and it had led to him lashing out at people to keep them at a distance. It had also led to people thinking he still hated the Weasley family, or Ginny in particular, when he'd only hated himself. Ginny recognised that emotion far too well (ages twelve to sixteen were not fun for most people, and hers was seemingly worse with the memories and soul of a mass-murdering psychopath in her head) and while everyone else had left Draco alone, she'd gone after him. It hadn't ended well and they'd both been hexed and both yelled obscenities, but Draco returned to work the next day calmer. He'd even thanked Ginny for the outlet and then profusely apologised, stating his therapist had chewed him out for what he'd said and done. Ginny had accepted his apology and then apologised as well, and shared her Sugar Quills with him, which was clearly the start of a beautiful friendship.

So now, almost two years after they'd started working together and a year of dating, Draco was making her suspicious, and that same horrible lump in her throat feeling made it difficult to breathe, let alone think straight.  _ Draco had never lied to her and the dating was good and the sex was great, so why was this awful feeling pooling in the pit of her stomach now? It didn't make  _ **_sense_ ** .   
  


She stopped pacing abruptly as a thought made its way through the fog in her mind and the lump in her throat.

_ What if Draco was going to break up with her? _

...

Draco winced at the sight of Ron's unkempt figure and wondered how his life had come to this. He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose, then used the pointy end of his wand to poke at the scruffy redhead.

"Five more minutes," Ron groaned, rolling over and promptly falling off the lounge. "Ow! Fuck, I'm up! Geez." He rubbed his sore nose and looked up, frowning when he saw Draco there. "What are you doing here?"

"You're in my house, Weasley, I should be asking you that. In fact, I want to ask you that, but instead, I'll ask: when was the last time you showered? There are spells for that, you know," Draco said, stepping back and trying to waft away the odour that was emanating from Ron.   
  


Ron burned red and he stood up. "Your mother let me in. I wanted to talk to you and... where were you all night?"

Draco raised an eyebrow. "I have to answer to you, do I?"

Ron ground his teeth and then forced himself to relax his jaw and breathe. "No. I just... I haven't been doing well since Hermione left."

Draco blinked. "Granger left? For how long?"

Ron covered his face with his hands and groaned. "I don't mean she just _popped_ _to Diagon Alley!_ She left to go to her mother's."

"And... this has something to do with me and you ending up on my couch? I don't see the correlation."

"It was all because of your invitations! They're charmed and it's more than a Speak Not Charm, I know it!"

Draco scoffed a laugh, shaking his head. "You're an idiot, Weasley. The only charm on there is a Speak Not Charm so the Secret Santa wouldn't be ruined. Why would I put a charm on a piece of parchment instead of a person?"

"Ah ha! So you  _ are _ going to hex us!"

"Oh, good gods, Weasley. Would you tone down the paranoia? You're starting to sound like my Uncle Orion who thought Muggles were trying to climb through his wardrobe. It's not a good comparison," Draco added when Ron just narrowed his eyes. "I'm not going to hex you or anyone who attends the luncheon, okay? Can you leave now and possibly have a shower in the next hour or two?"

"Now, Draco. Is that any way to talk to our guest?" Narcissa asked from the doorway.

"It is when he's accusing me of hexing people."

Narcissa raised an eyebrow and looked at Ron in a disapproving manner that reminded him of his own mother. "Why are you accusing Draco of hexing people?"

"Attempting to hex people. With the... uh, the invitations."

"Oh, you mean the Secret Santa charm? Well, it's such a little thing and who likes to ruin a surprise like that? I'm sure Draco can apologise for doing it without your knowledge and you can accept generously, like the adult wizards I know you are," Narcissa added.

Draco tried to resist the urge to sigh at his mother's words. Instead, he looked straight at Ron and offered his hand to shake. "I apologise for including a Speak Not Charm on an invitation without informing you prior."

Ron glanced at his hand like his fingers would turn into snakes, but at Narcissa's prompting cough, hurried to shake his hand, letting go as fast as possible. "Apology accepted."

"Excellent. Now, Ron, I believe you have to prove to your wife that you're not a child and can indeed look after yourself without her assistance in every matter. Draco is right in this: a shower would go a long way to proving this," Narcissa added, Ron turning red at her pointed expression.

"Uh. Right. Thanks for the couch, Malfoy. Uh... have a good day. Nice to see you again, ma'am," Ron said, Disapparating before anyone could stop him.

Draco set as many cleaning spells on the couch as he could, then looked at his mother. "Why are you letting random people into my house, Mother? The grate opener was for emergencies," he said.

"It seemed urgent. Besides, isn't this whole luncheon to go about proving you can be friendly to your potential family-in-law? Why not start early?"

"Because now he thinks he can come over here any time to lie on my couch! Or worse, ask for marriage advice."

Narcissa hid a smile. "You're right, it's best he doesn't ask you for advice on anything. He would be admitting you know more than him, then. Couldn't possibly have that happen, could we?"

"Mother."

"Yes, Draco dear?"

"Don't try manipulating me into thinking this is a good idea. It's not. He needs to talk to a therapist, not listen to whatever bollocks I - or anyone else - tries to serve up as advice."

Narcissa considered Draco's words and then nodded, conceding for the moment. "Do you think it's too direct to gift therapy appointments for Christmas? It's so difficult to buy for people you don't know," she mused.

Draco decided not to answer and left before she realised he hadn't spent the night at the Manor and started to question him on his whereabouts. A gentleman didn't kiss and tell.

...

Ginny had determined that her earlier thought about Draco breaking up with her was ridiculous. He said he loved her regularly and her paranoid and anxiety-ridden brain was stupid. Despite this, she had no idea what to get Draco for Christmas. He hadn't given her any ideas when she'd tried very subtly to ask outright what he wanted, simply stating that seeing her on Christmas Day was all he wanted and she didn't have to buy anything. It was sweet but ultimately frustrating. It was their first Christmas and one-year anniversary to boot, so of course she had to buy something for him.

It's just... This shopping trip was also making Ginny realise that while she and Draco had dates and talked about their lives and work, she couldn't confidently buy a gift for him. Draco was  _ Draco bloody Malfoy _ and already had everything and if he didn't have it, he would buy it when he wanted or realised he needed it. He already owned what seemed like hundreds of cufflinks, robes, outfits, and ties, he either owned all of the books he wanted or bought them on his own, he had annual season pass Quidditch tickets and more merchandise than she could shake a broom at, and she couldn't very well buy  _ curry _ as a Christmas gift.

_ Maybe she could do one of those Muggle voucher gift books for sex and massages or whatever. That was a cute first-year anniversary gift, right? _ she mused, stopping in front of a store in Diagon Alley to determine what else she could write in it.  _ Ah, fuck, maybe she should just buy lingerie and do a striptease instead? She still had her school uniform somewhere in her apartment, and Draco did like it when she teased him _ ...

"Oh, hello, Ginny! Are you doing your Christmas shopping, too, dear?" Molly asked, waving from a few metres down the street and hurrying over with Arthur on her heels.

_ Ah, fuck. She knew she should have gone to Muggle London first. She had to run into her mother right when she was thinking about sex, stripteasing her boyfriend, and lingerie, bloody hell _ .

"Hello, Mother. I'm trying to. It's a surprise, don't look," Ginny said, trying to hide her bags behind her back awkwardly.

"Oh, of course! We won't keep you, dear. Just wanted to say hello while we saw you," Molly said with a smile. "Oh my, those are some festive balls."

"What?"

Molly nodded at the window display in front of Ginny, where a towering tree was decorated with baubles animated with flying reindeer and Santa's sleigh riding into the night.

"Oh. Right. Have you finished your shopping yet?" Ginny asked, hoping the subject change might prompt her parents to keep moving.

"Just one last present for your brother. It's much calmer this year, thankfully," Molly said, cutting off abruptly, then smiling when Ginny looked at her curiously. "We're on our way to the wool shop so I can buy a few more colours to finish my jumper knitting."

Ginny frowned at that; her mother  _ always _ had the wool she needed to knit their jumpers well in advance of Christmas, and she certainly wasn't the type of witch to need extra wool a week before.

"Oh, did you hear that Flourish and Blotts are doing the Muggle thing with gift cards now? Well, gift certificates in their case; parchment is far too easy to lose when it's that small. Don't you think that's a good idea, Ginny dear? I think more shops should be doing those," Arthur said with a firm nod and eager smile.

"Oh. That's actually a brilliant idea. Thank you, Father. I have to go. Thank you, love you both, see you later," Ginny said, Apparating to Muggle London before either one could respond.

"Ooh, that charm is very good. I almost forgot about our Secret Santa gift, but it stopped me from saying anything about the invitation at all. Let's get something fun for Ginny before she comes back," Molly said with a smile.

Arthur perked up. "Can we buy one of those gift certificates, dear?"

"All right, but we're not spending another Knut in Flourish and Blotts after this. I need another pair of knitting needles if I'm going to finish these jumpers in time."

Arthur kissed her cheek. "I'm sure you'll get them done with time to spare, Mollywobbles. I'll help with the wool spells, if you'd like."

Molly blushed and patted his chest. "Thank you, dear."

...

Draco woke up at eight on Christmas day, which was far too early considering he'd been awake until nearly 2am with his anxious tossing and turning. It was the first Christmas he and Ginny were spending together as a couple, the first time he'd been sober on Christmas since the war ended, and to top it all off, he was worried about Ginny liking his surprise for her.

_ What if she wanted to keep them a secret entirely and didn't ever want to tell their families that they were dating? What if Ginny only wanted him for his money or name or only wanted sex? _

_ No. He had to stop this. He'd been through it with Ginny, his therapist, and his own reflection in the mirror on several occasions _ . Ginny had her own wealth now that the war was over, his name wasn't exactly the greatest thanks to his father's idiocy surrounding the war and Voldemort, not to mention his own involvement, and if she only wanted sex, then Ginny would have told him the first time he said 'I love you' to her. Ginny was far more honest about her feelings than he had grown up knowing was possible, and her openness and at-times blunt responses were just several of the many reasons Draco loved her.

Ginny stopped snoring as she yawned widely and opened her eyes. "Fuck me. What time is it?"

"About quarter past eight. Merry Christmas, Ginny love," he murmured, pressing a firm kiss to her mouth.

"It's too early for Christmas. I'm going back to sleep," she groaned, tugging the blanket up and over her head.

"All right. Mind if I join you?"

Ginny lifted the blanket and grinned up at him. "Wouldn't expect you to do anything else."

Draco grinned back at her, kissing her again, slowly and more luxuriously this time, and pulled the blanket down over them.

...

Charlie was running late. He didn't intend on running late, but one of the dragons had a suspected case of dragonpox and he had needed to help his fellow dragon handlers to coax the temperamental dragon into taking their medicine. Hiding the pills in a slab of bloodied meat while someone gave up their hard-earned Galleons to distract Drucilla had worked, but Charlie's freshly cleaned outfit had been the victim.

He'd showered and checked the bandage over one of his newer burns, then had rushed about his small apartment trying to get dressed and find the Malfoy luncheon invitation at the same time. By the time he'd put his shoes on and found the invitation -  _ which idiot had stuck it to the fridge?! _ \- Charlie was officially late and probably going to be in big trouble from his mother. She didn't have many rules - especially since all of her children were now grown adults - but tardiness was never appreciated, even more so with their luncheon being at Malfoy Manor this year rather than the Burrow.

The invitation started to change colour in his hands and Charlie winced at the sight. The invitation could only stay a Portkey for a certain amount of time, and when it fully turned red, he wouldn't be able to use it at all.

"Charlie! You're still there, thank Merlin. Open the grate, would you?"

Charlie startled at the sound of his youngest brother's voice, glancing from the reddening invitation to the flames. "What the hell are you doing here, Ron? You should already be at Malfoy Manor."

"I know! My invitation won't work," Ron said, holding up his invitation.

Rather, what remained of his invitation. Charlie blinked at the scrap of parchment. "Did you let a dragon loose on it?"

"Huh? Oh. Uh, no. A few... spells and curse breaker charms from work," he admitted. "Can you let me through now?"

Charlie had heard all about Hermione leaving Ron, and all about Ron insulting Fleur, and then somehow he'd heard about Ron falling asleep on the Malfoy's couch of all places from Harry and Astoria, and he didn't even talk to them regularly, and wondered if it was worth the hassle of taking his brother when he was likely to be a prat again. He sighed and opened his grate. "Hurry up before the Portkey doesn't work."

Ron thanked him and stepped through the fireplace, brushing off his clothes.

"Shit, hold on," Charlie said, grabbing Ron's hand and using the invitation to Portkey to Malfoy Manor just before it filled in with red.

...

"Gin? Are you all right, love?" Draco asked, kissing her neck.

"I'm going to be in so much trouble," Ginny groaned, even as her head lolled back against his shoulder. "Mother has a thing about us being tardy, and I am so very, very tardy right now."

Draco smiled against the curve of her shoulder. "Yet, I see you're making no move to leave. Should I be concerned or flattered?"

She laughed. "Flattered, of course. I wouldn't risk my mother's wrath for just anyone," Ginny said, turning her head to kiss him. "But I really should go. Mother's probably spent the whole week cooking and I'll need magically enhanced clothes for the rest of the year to recover."

Draco grinned and drew her in for another lengthy kiss. "We don't have to go back to work until the new year, you could stay here and clothes will be optional."

Ginny snickered as she pulled away, her laughter becoming louder as she thought about his words and proposal. "Good try, Malfoy. We're not having sex every day for the rest of the year."

Draco put on an exaggerated pout. "Ah, so those Christmas miracles are a lie after all."

Shaking her head at him, Ginny stepped forward to kiss him lightly. "I really, really have to go now."

"Let me accompany you to the gate?"

"All right, but let me say hello to your mother first. I bought her a gift and want to give it to her personally."

"No!"

Ginny blinked at Draco's response. "No... you don't want me to give your mother a gift, or you don't want me to say hello to her?"

Her self-doubts and worries reared their heads all at once, rushing towards her like a wave in a vast ocean, and pushing her under.

"No. I just... I think she's gone out for the day. Mother wanted to give us time together, so she's not here."

"Draco!" Narcissa called out, as if she was attempting to win the Worst Timing Awards.

Draco winced. "I... I'll be right back. Please don't leave. Please, Gin?"

Ginny wasn't sure she could Apparate at that moment anyway. She just nodded briefly in response.

Draco reached out, as though he wanted to cup her face and kiss her like he'd done so many times before, but then his hands dropped, fists clenched by his sides. "I'll... I'll be right back, love. Please don't leave," he begged, even as he Disapparated to another part of the Manor.

Vaguely, Ginny realised that she was going to be so very late for her mother's Christmas lunch. Despite the far too clear memory of the dressing down Ron had received just last year, Ginny doubted it would feel as awful as she did right at that moment. She was obviously getting too attached to Draco. They'd agreed to keep this thing between them just between them, but Narcissa had, of course, found out since she and Draco still lived in the Manor together.

Ginny thought that she'd been getting along well with the older woman, especially considering the compromising position Narcissa had initially found her and Draco in, but it obviously meant nothing if Draco didn't even want her to give a gift to Narcissa for Christmas.

_ Maybe he thought she'd bought something kitschy or embarrassing? Or this relationship was only meant to be about sex instead of feelings, and... fuck, buying presents for your boyfr- fuck buddy's mother was going a step too far, wasn't it?  _ _ Damn it. Of course, it had to be her luck that she would be the one to catch feelings when the other person didn't _ .

She inhaled and exhaled slowly, trying to control her emotions. She just needed to be calm about this. Calm and cool and if she could get past the lump in her throat, she could actually be a grown adult woman and ask Draco if he did want to be more than fuck buddies. If he said no, then she could totally deal with that.  _ Possibly. After a lot of Firewhisky to drown her emotions faster than these waves of anxiety were pulling her down _ . After the last few weeks of uncertainty and anxiety, Ginny had less control over her emotions than she would have liked.

...

Draco returned to his bedroom to find Ginny kneeling on the floor and looking like someone had stolen a flying carpet from under her. "Gin? Ginny? Love, look at me. Please. What's wrong?" he asked, kneeling in front of her and trying to determine if she even realised he was there and talking to her.

She finally looked at him, blinking as though she didn't realise where they were or why he was there, and Draco swallowed hard and hoped she would be able to talk about whatever had brought her to her knees like this.

"Are you going to break up with me?" Ginny asked.

"What? No, of course not! I love you. I... Is this because of the present for Mother or did I do something else to make you think that?" he asked, thinking how quiet Ginny had been in the last week.

She bit her tongue to focus on the pain between her teeth, gathered her courage to the sticking place, and looked at Draco. "You've been hiding something from me and now you're lying. What else should I think, Draco?"

He ran a hand through his hair and cursed under his breath. "All right. It was meant to be a surprise, love. I just... here, this will explain better," Draco murmured, tapping his wand to his black jumper.

Ginny's eyes narrowed as plain black faded, only to be replaced by an absolute riot of colour and -  _ were those Christmas lights? _

Draco's mouth twitched at the expression on her face - mostly confusion but some amusement, at the very least - and he coughed when she didn't say anything for a full minute.

"What the fuck, Draco? How does that explain  _ anything _ except you've gone barmy?"

Draco grinned outright then and shook his head. "All right, bad explanation. I invited your family over to have lunch here. Today. For a Christmas luncheon... thing."

Ginny blinked, but that could have been because the Christmas lights on his bloody jumper started to flash, and Draco all too abruptly realised what an awful idea this was.  _ What if Ginny didn't want to go public? How could he explain it to her family as to why he'd invited them on a supposed whim? He could do something nice for a colleague, right? Ginny was his partner at work, so that meant something, uh, special? Ah, fuck. _

"You want them to know about us?" Ginny asked, each word slow and measured like she was trying to understand his ridiculous explanation and reasoning.

"Yes. But only if you want them to know. I just, as in  _ literally this minute _ , realised that this was a bloody stupid idea if you don't want them to know. I'm sorry for putting you on the spot like this, love."

Ginny pressed her fingertips to his mouth. "I want them to know, Draco," she said, surprised by how genuine she felt and sounded. "I want everyone to know, in fact."

Draco grinned behind her fingertips.

"And you want my family to know so you invited them over to have Christmas lunch with you and Narcissa? Even though you haven't celebrated Christmas since you were six and think it's a stupid holiday?" she clarified.

Wincing at the reminder of the idiotic things he'd said while plastered the year before, Draco nodded awkwardly against her fingers. He moved her hand away gently. "It's your favourite holiday and you were saying how you didn't want to split the day up between me and Mother and your family. I thought this could help both."

Ginny frowned. "When did I say that? I don't doubt it, but I don't remember... oh, was it - "

"Your birthday and you drank the whole bottle of Firewhisky. You said that somewhere around 2am, if I remember correctly. I think you were sick after that."

"Bloody hell, why do you love me?"

"I love you for so many reasons that not even Flourish and Blotts have enough parchment for me to write them all down, Ginny love. You're wicked, smart, ruthless, and protective, and I am legitimately terrified of being on the wrong side of your wand, which apparently works for me," Draco said, winking when she snickered. He grinned again and indicated to his jumper. "Do you see this horrid monstrosity? I'm wearing this in front of your family, some of whom I am meeting for the very first time in... fifteen minutes. If that's not love, then I don't know what is."

Ginny started laughing as the Christmas lights went off again, and Draco couldn't stop the fond expression forming on his face at the sight. "You look bloody ridiculous in that jumper, Draco. Can you at least make the lights stop?" she asked when her laughter finally settled.

"I honestly don't know. It's a Muggle thing and the instructions were vague and destroyed with fire."

Ginny snorted. "Of course they were. I love you," she said, leaning close to kiss him firmly.

"Mm. Just wait 'til you see yours."

"Oh, no. Really?"

"Really, love. It's a themed Christmas luncheon and we're taking embarrassing photos, and I'm going to get at least two framed."

Ginny laughed again. "Gods, you will, won't you?"

"Definitely. One will be going on the mantelpiece and the other is for work."

Ginny grinned. "Make it three; you'll need another one for me."

"Deal, love."

...

"Has 'Mione turned up yet?" Ron asked when he and Charlie arrived late.

"Hello to you too, Ron. Merry Christmas to you, too. Hope you've had a lovely morning, too," Ginny said, raising her eyebrow at him pointedly.

Ron coughed. "Right, sorry. Hello, Gin. Merry Christmas; how's your morning been?"

Ginny smiled sweetly, a hint of wickedness in the smile. "I had a bloody good shag this morning, actually. I'd like you to meet my boyfriend," she said, looping her arm through Draco's and patting his hand.

"You think I'd be used to the announcement by now, but I'm not. I'm really not," Bill muttered off to the side.

"You and me both," Draco said, but smiled at Ginny with such fondness that no one believed him.

"You... your boyfriend?!"

"Yes, Ron. I understand the concept is foreign to you since you're married, but it's the term people use when they're dating one another."

"Dating... You... You're dating?"

Ginny watched as her brother's complexion turned from his usual colouring down to a pale white then moved to a shade of green and then to a red so utterly fast she was concerned for his heart.

"You're dating  _ Malfoy?! _ "

"My, what a high pitch you have," George said, wrinkling his nose as he wrapped an arm around Ron's shoulders. "You're looking mighty dressed up there, Ronnie-kins. Hoping to impress a certain someone?" he asked with an outlandish wink at Narcissa Malfoy.

"So 'Mione is here?" Ron asked, suddenly distracted by the thought of seeing his wife. "Has she seen the two of you?" he asked, narrowing his eyes at Draco and Ginny.

"Unfortunately, Hermione sent a note this morning to inform me she would be unable to attend our luncheon today. She requires more time and space, but congratulates Draco and Ginny on their decision to inform others of their dating."

"She knew?" Ron asked incredulously.

"It wasn't that hard to figure out, Ronnie-kins," Charlie said, brushing off his pompom covered jumper. "Why else would we be invited to the Malfoy's for Christmas luncheon?"

Ron was silent and opened and closed his mouth several times. He saw Harry and Astoria walking into the room wearing matching jumpers and shrugged George's arm off his shoulders to go to them. "Harry, did you know?"

Harry blinked behind his glasses. "Know what?"

"That Draco and I are dating?" Ginny called, grinning.

Harry reddened. "No, I didn't before today. And I didn't want to know that much detail about your morning, Ginny."

Astoria snickered beside him. "You did ask what she did this morning, Harry. You only have yourself to blame."

"I know. I'm trying to forget the whole thing," he said.

"Right. I'm going to go see 'Mione. She'll forgive me if she sees me in person, and her folks have a standing Portkey invitation open for me."

"Ronald Bilius Weasley, Hermione has specifically requested time and space, and you will give it to her or so help me - " Molly cut off abruptly as Ron paled at her implied threat.

"But - "

"No buts. Your wife has specifically told you something, so listen to her," Percy said with a glare.

"It's not that difficult, Ronnie-kins. C'mon, we've got food and presents waiting," George cajoled.

"Not that difficult? What would you know? You haven't dated anyone in years," Ron snapped, obviously trying to get the attention away from himself, especially with Draco and Narcissa right there and watching.

"No, I haven't, but I still know how to listen to people, even with one good ear," George replied. He turned on his heel, no longer willing to play mediator or peacekeeper, and hugged Ginny and Draco tight. "You hurt her, there won't be enough of you left as evidence."

"George!"

"I know, dear sister, you can threaten without my help. But the same goes for you: don't hurt him, if you can help it. Lad looks like he's in enough pain already with a jumper like that," George said, grinning.

"Don't hug him for too long, George; his lights might set your tinsel on fire," Bill called.

"Good point. Thanks, Bill."

Draco wanted to say something in return, but then his house elf appeared to announce that lunch was served. He squeezed Ginny's hand briefly and smiled at their guests, a perfect Malfoy host. "I'll lead the way. If you'll follow me to the dining room," he said, guiding Ginny along beside him.

"Now, Fleur, I think you missed the point of an ugly sweater competition," George called, nudging his older brother out of the way to offer his arm to Fleur.

Fleur raised an eyebrow at him but took his arm. "Zis is ze ugliest sweater I own."

"I'll have you know I worked very hard on that knitting spell," Bill called out behind her.

"Oui, I know. That is why I wear it, Bill," she replied with a warm smile.

"I didn't know you knitted that, dear. I can show you a way to really get the stitches tight," Molly said eagerly, smiling so broadly that Bill couldn't refuse.

"Now, I don't think your youngest son will be up to escorting me, so I believe that leaves you and me to walk together, Arthur," Narcissa said with a gentle smile.

"Thank you, Cissy. I'll have to teach him his manners again. Now, how long have those two been dating? I thought Gin-bug looked happier lately but I couldn't figure out why. I thought it might've been the rubber duck Portkeys she and Draco found a few months back."

"Draco's certainly smiling and laughing more these days. I know they were dating on Valentine's Day this year, due to the compromising position I discovered them in. I can't say for certain if they were together before then."

"Ah. It's good they still have a healthy libido even after at least eight months together. Molly will be wanting grandchildren from someone soon, and some of our children believe dragons count."

Bill snickered and Charlie glared at his brother. "Just wait 'til I tell them you and Fleur adopted another cat," he threatened.

Bill's snickering stopped and he glared back at him. "Go ahead, Mr. I Have Twelve Dragon Babies. You only had eight last time."

"How'd you know about the newest ones?"

" _Dragon Monthly_ _Magazine_. Duh."

Harry and Astoria kept Ron occupied and stopped him from Apparating to his parents-in-law anyway, following the Malfoys and Weasleys to the dining room for their luncheon.

...

Draco pressed a kiss to Ginny's shoulder as she curled up against his chest. "Feeling better now, love?"

"Mmm. Much. Stress-relieving orgasms are the best," she groaned, stretching and arching against him. "Thank you again for today, Draco. I know you were disappointed to lose the ugly sweater competition - "

"I still say it was rigged," he muttered.

Ginny grinned. "You have to admit the on-fire tinsel really did add to the jumper's ugliness."

"It only did that because of my jumper."

"Anyway, your competitiveness aside, I had a lovely day and I'm glad they all know now. And thank you for the presents."

Draco wrinkled his nose. "I was trying to spoil you; I didn't think everyone would buy the same bloody Secret Santa gift for you."

Ginny grinned. "You know how you said Flourish and Blotts don't have enough parchment for you to write why you love me? Well, we can buy it all now with those gift parchments."

Draco laughed and tugged her up his body to kiss her. "Gods, I love you."

"Love you too, Draco."

Soon, everyone they knew and cared about would know it, too.

...

  
The end.

Thanks for reading; I hope you liked it!


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